this blog is a visual notebook of inspirations for a group of bandit bloggers. we post things we see and like. our lives don’t revolve around singular topics and neither does our blog. sorry! nothing is in-or-out of context here. enjoy xx
this is how the cameras were mounted and operated by hockney himself
thank you chris obrien for the video
love this video series by david hockney of woldgate woods, england where he lived. there were the four seasons captured on video through this 9 panel installation mirroring his polaroids and photographs he’s so well known for. the winter sequence shot on november 26th (2010) is currently at pace gallery new york and seeing it was so beautiful, it made me want to move out of the city for the first time. worth a visit if you can skip a few shows. by uh
röyksopp featuring karin dreijer andersson, the lead singer from the knife
and i guess we have to put this old one in there too, now that dd and kt and have talked so much about “the knife” and “the drug” and all… cause what else is there? but a great music video… by xy
rocking the fashion world, one low-res screen at a time
houston we have lift-off
only thing missing was lighters in the crowd
ss15: gareth pugh the brit fashion cult-icon and ex-intern at rick owens, rocked new york city two nights ago the way only rock stars can… and what a breath of fresh air that was, in this desolate world of new york fashion. how many marc jacobs (even he ran away), donna karans, calvin klein, ralph laurens shows can you go to? and once you get there what surprise is awaiting you? more merchandise to sell… in bulk. m. arnault is counting big on marc jacobs IPO. they may all be rich but not very interesting, atleast to me. “oh come on” you may say, but then there are the accused alternative gang of poor, richard chai, rodarte, narciso rodriguez and the like who do their very best in an atmosphere of drab-ery and politics, driven by the end dollar sales, aiming to inject an ounce of creativity if they can manage to sneak that in… just ask, in private they will all agree. you add to this the fact that every manny, moe & jack celebrity who has started a line (gwen stefani’s L.A.M.B. made the harper’s bazaar hotlist!!) and that every editor with a paying job is obliged to cover the crap, and you end up with a uninspiring cycle that has every average citizen in milwaukee sporting a designer hand bag, from canal street. success? maybe? but not really. i mean the minute every joe and sally wants something, its clearly not that genius or that special anymore. because by default in order to be “that popular” you have to pass everyone’s acceptance meter. well we’ve all seen what committees do to brilliance, now make that committee half the population of earth, and that’s what you get. mediocre but still over priced rags we have to all accept and choose from. pink slime… sort of.
in the midst of all this, with mercedes-benz buying out fashion week on wholesale, little lexus rocks the boat by funding gareth pugh. and what a show that was. the waiters, food, and drinks aside, the impression of the presentation was epic. i cant remember a single outfit, and editors will be quick to justify just that. how the show was great but will not sell a single piece. well last time i checked half the runways looks never got produced thanks to buyers who second guess the public, and rightly so, after all they are after the mass. and the designers have obliged. but the show has always been about the philosophy and direction of a designer (if they happen to have one), much more than a single piece that sells… and if there is one thing you can take home with you from gareths show is that hes a genius, he is a true creative, with a new vision and great taste. that’s going to get me into the store or the site, and only then, as with everything else, i will chose to buy something or not. as for lexus, hats off to them supporting such a great talent and saving new york from itself. after all new york is what it is today thanks to thousands of fleeing souls from europe and across the world in WW2 who came here and were able to do what they couldn’t do elsewhere. looks like we need to import a bunch more, gareth is welcome any day. it seems like once they get here, and sit a while and get comfy they forget what it was all about. well-done lexus for your smart jab at mercedes for a fraction of their investment… just stay off the cobalt blue car at the entrance next time… or check with us before picking colors… otherwise a silver one would do just fine. you can also read tim blanks thoughts from style.com he had nice things to say but was rather more diplomatic than us. by dd
pass this on… one of our old time favorite songs by swedish band the knife. we were actually just talking about the norwegian band röyksopp and how i never really loved their music that much, except maybe the track “the drug”, or “what else is there” which ironically features the lead singer from the knife. so then we looked up “pass this on” and from there i was saying how this video was inspired by master of ceremonies himself… mister nick cave, and his amazing video which we had posted in the past; 15 feet of pure white snow featuring britpop prince, jarvis cocker on the dance floor… i saw it necessary to insure we post this and link it to the old post on nick cave and leave it to you to judge the rest. but the similarity and style of the two videos are impossible to miss. see for yourself. ok… happy friday and good weekend, good vibes, positive thinking, sunshine, bubble gum and all that prozac crap… sorry someone told me today to be positive, so i’m doing my best. by dd
just when we thought summer was over in new york, we have staggering temperatures into september, it definitely feels like an endless summer, and it makes us want to catch that wave one more time. by kt
i wonder if nk will agree with me on this choice after he already declared the greatest woman earlier this week. a vintage poster that has served as inspiration for pop videos (oops, they did it again, and again…) and funhouse vaudevillian debauchery for years to come, thank you linda lovelace. by sv
the wirra willa pavilion is a miesian-inspired glass pavilion situated in a vibrant and fertile, rural landscape setting not dissimilar to that seen in a claude monet painting.
the aim was to create a multifunctional space that provided an experiential opportunity for the visitor so they could appreciate, to the full extent, the inherent beauty of the landscape. the specific site is situated remotely on a private property that totals 80 acres and was originally established as a stone and citrus fruit orchard. there are well established gardens intertwined throughout.
the pavilion cantilevers over the natural spring fed dam to connect the inhabitant to a sublime environment that is pulsing with an abundance of life and natural beauty. it is essentially used as a private and remote spa house and guest retreat that compliments the existing residence on the property.
simplicity is essential to the success of the project. the approach was to maintain simplicity through each stage of the design process in order to create an elegant, unobtrusive incision into the landscape setting that allows for both prospect and refuge.
the use of the pavilion is multifunctional. the design needed to be flexible and adaptable to accommodate for various uses during the changing seasons throughout the year.
site selection was critical from a sustainability perspective; the location was selected for its remoteness, opportunity for prospect, and orientation to the sun and prevailing winds.
the orientation of the pavilion in the northeast captures the sun and responds to prevailing winds. in the warmer summer months, the sliding glass panels can open up to allow for natural cross ventilation by inviting the prevailing breezes, while in the cooler winter, thermal mass of materials conduct heat from the sun to allow for a relatively constant internal climate.
the materiality was selected for the inherent tellurian characteristics to harmonize the building to the natural setting. the geometry itself is simple; the building is essentially two bisecting rectangular prisms, one created from composite steel, concrete and glass, and the other a sandstone cladded core. the structural solution was derived from a rationalized ‘grid’ system.
it is a special place that one can escape to find peace and solitude.
above the 1967 datsun (yes, datsun) fairlady sports 2000
if you can forgive its lame name (fairlady?) that, perhaps, was lost in translation, this was japan’s lovely little answer to the jaguar xj6 and ferrari spyders of the time. it was an inexpensive alternative to the MG, triumph, fiat and the alfa romeos of europe. to me, and enzo will strangle me for this, it was always the baby sister to the ferrari 250GT SWB california spider; the resemblances are uncanny (below with scaglietti coach works). either way, this was one marvelous looking car despite its price. here’s japan vs. the italians, and in this case they both won big. too bad the recent models are so uninspiring… and yes, the datsun’s too. this beauty was on ebay at some point and the “buy it now” price was US$35,000 while the highest bid at the time it was documented was US$18,100. who knows what it actually sold for but either way, what a steal… by dd
below the ferrari 250GT SWB california spyder (scaglietti)
massively personal and poetic film. based on a book by edmundo desnoes and directed in 1968 by tomás gutiérrez alea (IMDB) during the turmoil of social change in cuba. it is unfortunately his one and only good film, but how many can you do in a lifetime anyway? don’t ask why the titles are in japanese… by dd
this is absolutely one of our favorite album covers. one man on fire, the other not–floyd’s idea that you can be burned at any given moment, so you should conceal your real feelings. a little known fact, the burning man IS actually on fire; before the shoot, he prepped by wearing an asbestos suit and a wig, then dousing himself with gasoline and lighting a match. certainly going to lengths for a good reason, any pink floyd fan would agree. the cover was designed by hipgnosis, the english art design group who specialized in rock albums. by nk + sv
all this talk about films and we haven’t said a word about the recent passing of perhaps the last surviving old hollywood starlet, lauren bacall. known to her friends as betty, ms. bacall’s career spanned decades. a tough, no-nonsense, downright lady with that immersing, smoky voice and carnal gaze. going through the archives, i finally watched written on the wind, douglas sirk’s film starring bacall and rock hudson, the satirically pleasing look at big business and the destructive families oftentimes behind them. the film is playing at the museum of the moving image’s see it big!: hollywood melodrama series tonight, if you’re in the new york city area. if not, you can read more about it here. by sv
a visual collective outlet of inspiration
